on3m@n@rmy wrote:- Houston on the big losing end of the Osweiller trade with Cleveland. Cleveland look like geniuses. - Bears could make play for Garappolo. But now so could Cleveland after acquiring Osweiller, who Cleveland could package with picks to the Pats in exchange for Garappolo. - Cousins says he wants to be traded, but he is signing his franchise tender. So is his signing the tender mean he plays for Wash next season, or does that just clear a hurdle so he can be traded. I really don't know. I'm asking.

This ESPN report says that Houston made out big by dumping Osweiler to where GM Rick Smith has freed up a lot of cap space to go after another QB (whom ever that might be...Romo? Garoppolo? Draft pick?). The only two QBs Houston has on it's roster right now is Savage & Weeden.

Houston believes they're one QB away from winning it all, and Osweiler wasn't the man in their mind. Now Osweiler's laying a foundation of a journeyman QB, Lol.

Yes ol Ozzie shoulda stayed in Denver. Good read in that link and good point. Now Houston just needs to fix the QB situation.

As far as I know Cousins will only be Washington's for the 2017 season unless they franchise him again next year. Judging by the fact that the 49ers just signed Hoyer and Barkley to short term contracts most people assume that the 49ers will make a play for Cousins next year where they won't have to pay the guaranteed money he will be paid this year but you would think that Cousins would not leave Washington without a long term lucrative deal or a franchise tag from the 49ers anyway so the 49ers will have to pay for him anyway and Cousins wants his pay day. Washington have said they don't want to trade him and the 49ers have already committed themselves for this year anyway. Depending on who you believe unless the 49ers draft a gun QB which is improbable, Cousins and Shanahan want to reunite. Cousins obviously wants to leave now but it's not going to happen. How this effects Washington in the 2017 season remains to be seen but it's not a good look for the organization or their number one QB.

If I were Cousins I'd want out of WA too, not just because of inept management, and being tagged again, but they are losing both Garcon and Jackson for him to throw to. I'm not sure on NFL rules if he refuses to sign the tag. Does he become an unpaid holdout? He's not going to SF this year, is he?

I am curious to see if Romo ends up in Houston, or Denver. I think with him it won't be about money. It will be about a chance to win a SB, and an OL that can protect him. Denver is two seasons removed from a SB, with a still stellar defense, but I don't know if enough tools on offense. Plus, I think the Broncos have the second hardest schedule in the NFL this year (behind the Chargers). Houston is also closer to Dallas, if that's where Tony has deep enough roots.

For the second time in two years the Bills have lost a receiver to the Patriots. First it was Kevin Hogan, and now it's Stephon Gilmore. This is very smart on the Pats part in so many ways. First, they are likely to lose Bennett. Even if they don't, Gronk is not likely to play all 16 games, knowing his history. The Pats also seem to be danging Garrapollo out there to the highest bidder, without saying anything. Pats are losing Logan Ryan, who is aging. I'm curious if they let Malcom Butler go. His agent seemed to imply Butler would like to stay in NE and wasn't taking a hard line on money.

I think the Browns and Texans both win in that trade, but more so the Browns, who are clearly playing for 2018 and beyond, trying to do what Pete Carroll did with the Seahawks. Let's see if they can draft that well. I can't really see them holding onto Osweiller, they may dump him for more draft picks and eat some more $ in that process, or just release him and eat it, but it's hard to tell. The Browns also signed Kevin Zeitler, who was the best guard available in all of FA, which is a nice coup, and they held onto Joel Bitonio, and Joe Thomas is still playing very well. They also picked up center JC Tretter who played well in GB before getting hurt. Whomever they keep at QB has to be happy with this - the makings of a very solid OL. I'm curious if they hold onto RG3. I doubt it. I always thought Hugh Jackson may make a run at AJ McCarron. But it looks like the Jets are interested more in him.

But the Jets already have Bryce Petty and Christen Hackenberg, who need to play some. If you ask me, McCarron and Petty seem about the same stage of development career wise. The Jets are also looking at Jay Cutler. I mean, really? This team is more messy than Washington.

Props to Mike Glennon and good luck in Chicago. I like him, just not his arm strength or deep field accuracy. Will he overcome that to be the next Alex Smith? We'll see.

I think the 49ers signing Barkley is a pretty good deal, but can they protect him? He now competes with Hoyer, who may have a better arm, but poorer vision. Either way, can they protect ANY QB they put back there?

Russell Okung got a better deal with the Chargers than what he had in Denver, this time getting over $13m in guaranteed money.

The Packers are always one of the most quiet teams in FA, but were smart to hold onto Nick Perry.

Raiders quiet, even with some cash to spend. They let CB DJ Hayden go, which was no surprise. The team still needs a good DT to replace Stacy McGee, and MLB as well, as Malcom Smith was underwhelming.

If I were Cousins I'd want out of WA too, not just because of inept management, and being tagged again, but they are losing both Garcon and Jackson for him to throw to. I'm not sure on NFL rules if he refuses to sign the tag. Does he become an unpaid holdout? He's not going to SF this year, is he?

I am curious to see if Romo ends up in Houston, or Denver. I think with him it won't be about money. It will be about a chance to win a SB, and an OL that can protect him. Denver is two seasons removed from a SB, with a still stellar defense, but I don't know if enough tools on offense. Plus, I think the Broncos have the second hardest schedule in the NFL this year (behind the Chargers). Houston is also closer to Dallas, if that's where Tony has deep enough roots.

For the second time in two years the Bills have lost a receiver to the Patriots. First it was Kevin Hogan, and now it's Stephon Gilmore. This is very smart on the Pats part in so many ways. First, they are likely to lose Bennett. Even if they don't, Gronk is not likely to play all 16 games, knowing his history. The Pats also seem to be danging Garrapollo out there to the highest bidder, without saying anything. Pats are losing Logan Ryan, who is aging. I'm curious if they let Malcom Butler go. His agent seemed to imply Butler would like to stay in NE and wasn't taking a hard line on money.

I think the Browns and Texans both win in that trade, but more so the Browns, who are clearly playing for 2018 and beyond, trying to do what Pete Carroll did with the Seahawks. Let's see if they can draft that well. I can't really see them holding onto Osweiller, they may dump him for more draft picks and eat some more $ in that process, or just release him and eat it, but it's hard to tell. The Browns also signed Kevin Zeitler, who was the best guard available in all of FA, which is a nice coup, and they held onto Joel Bitonio, and Joe Thomas is still playing very well. They also picked up center JC Tretter who played well in GB before getting hurt. Whomever they keep at QB has to be happy with this - the makings of a very solid OL. I'm curious if they hold onto RG3. I doubt it. I always thought Hugh Jackson may make a run at AJ McCarron. But it looks like the Jets are interested more in him.

But the Jets already have Bryce Petty and Christen Hackenberg, who need to play some. If you ask me, McCarron and Petty seem about the same stage of development career wise. The Jets are also looking at Jay Cutler. I mean, really? This team is more messy than Washington.

Props to Mike Glennon and good luck in Chicago. I like him, just not his arm strength or deep field accuracy. Will he overcome that to be the next Alex Smith? We'll see.

I think the 49ers signing Barkley is a pretty good deal, but can they protect him? He now competes with Hoyer, who may have a better arm, but poorer vision. Either way, can they protect ANY QB they put back there?

Russell Okung got a better deal with the Chargers than what he had in Denver, this time getting over $13m in guaranteed money.

The Packers are always one of the most quiet teams in FA, but were smart to hold onto Nick Perry.

Raiders quiet, even with some cash to spend. They let CB DJ Hayden go, which was no surprise. The team still needs a good DT to replace Stacy McGee, and MLB as well, as Malcom Smith was underwhelming.

Curious if Adrien Peterson ends up somewhere other than Minnesota.

Sounds like Cousins wants out of Washington now but there is so much conflicting information out there it changes every day. The 49ers have kinda set things up to make people believe he's coming this year. Washington are saying there will be no trade. I just assumed that Hoyer and Barkley are there for Ponder and Gabbert. No one is saying anything about Kap and now that Cutler has been signed by the Jets, it's not looking good for him especially if the Patriots let Garoppolo go to the Browns and the Browns offload Ostweiler. Maybe Hoyer will be the 49ers starter for 2017 at least he knows Shanahan's system. Most people seem to think that Houston will be a better fit for Romo. With a tight QB market I think there will be some disappointed rookie QBs coming out of the draft. Apart from the best ones there may not be much interest same goes for the running backs. The Jets and Washington seem to be in disarray and most people expect the Jets coach to be a casualty this year and take the fall for a badly run franchise.

Interesting QB figures there especially for Brees and Brady not to mention Luck.

This has been one of the craziest FA periods I can remember. But I may need some hep with the remembering part.

I will say this. Something different has finally happened that I do not think we have ever seen before. It has to do with one man, one system, one idea and several experiments gone bad. The end result is finally good in terms of direction. Tom Cable (the man), Seattle offensive line (the system), converting defensive linemen to OL (the idea), and players like Sweezy and Sokoli (the experiments) who were defenders in college. There were other failed experiments besides those two, but at least those two made the roster and played some or started.

It all began several (3-4 years ago) when Cable was dissatisfied with the offensive line players who came through college programs that were either too much skewed toward pass offenses or used RPO (run-pass option) blocking styles. To Cable, the aggressiveness of OL players from those systems was not to Tom's liking. Especially players who were taught RPO in college, because every RPO run play has a pass element, meaning 3 yards downfield the linemen would have to lay off their blocks (to avoid illegal man downfield penalties if a pass was made) instead of driving a defender backwards. It is not hard to see how aggression could be abandoned during an RPO play. Tom did not like having to reteach college offensive linemen his style of blocking. He decided he would rather take an aggressive, mean defender and teach him to block his way. It worked somewhat with Sweezy, and so he drafted several other defenders the following year. Sokoli was the only one who made the roster, but that did not stick. The fact that Seattle in this 2 days of free agency have agreed to terms with G (or T) Luke Joeckel and have brought in Packer's TJ Lang for a visit shows Tom has finally abandoned (at least for now) the idea of converting DLmen to OLmen. And this makes good sense at least for one reason: REPS. Whether drafted as rookies, or signed as free agents, guys who have been playing offensive line at least have the reps under their belt. And that, while not impossible to replace, is very difficult to replace. Free agency is not the draft, but I'm hoping Tom has learned it does not pay to draft college defensive linemen and teach them to play OL.

On top of that, Laremy "gas mask" Tunsil. Remember him? He played in an RPO college offense. He really struggled his first few games in his rookie 2016 season, but was solid at Guard and showed he can play tackle in the end. So guys who played RPO in college can transition just fine to the NFL.

In other short notes:- Fox Sports would like to replace John Lynch with....Tony Romo- RGIII out the door in Cleveland- Viks sign LT Riley Reiff- Martellus Bennett signs with Green Bay- Terrelle Pryor signs with Washington

This has been one of the craziest FA periods I can remember. But I may need some hep with the remembering part.

I will say this. Something different has finally happened that I do not think we have ever seen before. It has to do with one man, one system, one idea and several experiments gone bad. The end result is finally good in terms of direction. Tom Cable (the man), Seattle offensive line (the system), converting defensive linemen to OL (the idea), and players like Sweezy and Sokoli (the experiments) who were defenders in college. There were other failed experiments besides those two, but at least those two made the roster and played some or started.

It all began several (3-4 years ago) when Cable was dissatisfied with the offensive line players who came through college programs that were either too much skewed toward pass offenses or used RPO (run-pass option) blocking styles. To Cable, the aggressiveness of OL players from those systems was not to Tom's liking. Especially players who were taught RPO in college, because every RPO run play has a pass element, meaning 3 yards downfield the linemen would have to lay off their blocks (to avoid illegal man downfield penalties if a pass was made) instead of driving a defender backwards. It is not hard to see how aggression could be abandoned during an RPO play. Tom did not like having to reteach college offensive linemen his style of blocking. He decided he would rather take an aggressive, mean defender and teach him to block his way. It worked somewhat with Sweezy, and so he drafted several other defenders the following year. Sokoli was the only one who made the roster, but that did not stick. The fact that Seattle in this 2 days of free agency have agreed to terms with G (or T) Luke Joeckel and have brought in Packer's TJ Lang for a visit shows Tom has finally abandoned (at least for now) the idea of converting DLmen to OLmen. And this makes good sense at least for one reason: REPS. Whether drafted as rookies, or signed as free agents, guys who have been playing offensive line at least have the reps under their belt. And that, while not impossible to replace, is very difficult to replace. Free agency is not the draft, but I'm hoping Tom has learned it does not pay to draft college defensive linemen and teach them to play OL.

On top of that, Laremy "gas mask" Tunsil. Remember him? He played in an RPO college offense. He really struggled his first few games in his rookie 2016 season, but was solid at Guard and showed he can play tackle in the end. So guys who played RPO in college can transition just fine to the NFL.

In other short notes:- Fox Sports would like to replace John Lynch with....Tony Romo- RGIII out the door in Cleveland- Viks sign LT Riley Reiff- Martellus Bennett signs with Green Bay- Terrelle Pryor signs with Washington

Interesting. Didn't know Cable was doing that. I was wondering what was going to happen with RGIII. He could end up like Kaep. Difficult to place now. From what I heard about Romo's health history with his back I think retirement would be the sensible choice. Back conditions in a contact sport are going to be an ongoing problem and it already could make his post football life a problem. I think the writing is on the wall but it sounds like he wants a ring before he retires and with all of the media coming out of the Cowboys about Romo and what he will do I think he would have announced his retirement by now if he really wanted that so my guess is a two year contract with Houston or Denver or he does the smart thing and takes the desk job. I can't see Elway overpaying him though as he has a history of being economical and he was only going to pay Kaep what he thought he was worth which wasn't much. Maybe if Romo does not get the offer he thinks he deserves than he might retire anyway, hard to say. He's had a long career with lots of injuries but maybe watching Prescott has made him hungry again ?

This has been one of the craziest FA periods I can remember. But I may need some hep with the remembering part.

I will say this. Something different has finally happened that I do not think we have ever seen before. It has to do with one man, one system, one idea and several experiments gone bad. The end result is finally good in terms of direction. Tom Cable (the man), Seattle offensive line (the system), converting defensive linemen to OL (the idea), and players like Sweezy and Sokoli (the experiments) who were defenders in college. There were other failed experiments besides those two, but at least those two made the roster and played some or started.

It all began several (3-4 years ago) when Cable was dissatisfied with the offensive line players who came through college programs that were either too much skewed toward pass offenses or used RPO (run-pass option) blocking styles. To Cable, the aggressiveness of OL players from those systems was not to Tom's liking. Especially players who were taught RPO in college, because every RPO run play has a pass element, meaning 3 yards downfield the linemen would have to lay off their blocks (to avoid illegal man downfield penalties if a pass was made) instead of driving a defender backwards. It is not hard to see how aggression could be abandoned during an RPO play. Tom did not like having to reteach college offensive linemen his style of blocking. He decided he would rather take an aggressive, mean defender and teach him to block his way. It worked somewhat with Sweezy, and so he drafted several other defenders the following year. Sokoli was the only one who made the roster, but that did not stick. The fact that Seattle in this 2 days of free agency have agreed to terms with G (or T) Luke Joeckel and have brought in Packer's TJ Lang for a visit shows Tom has finally abandoned (at least for now) the idea of converting DLmen to OLmen. And this makes good sense at least for one reason: REPS. Whether drafted as rookies, or signed as free agents, guys who have been playing offensive line at least have the reps under their belt. And that, while not impossible to replace, is very difficult to replace. Free agency is not the draft, but I'm hoping Tom has learned it does not pay to draft college defensive linemen and teach them to play OL.

On top of that, Laremy "gas mask" Tunsil. Remember him? He played in an RPO college offense. He really struggled his first few games in his rookie 2016 season, but was solid at Guard and showed he can play tackle in the end. So guys who played RPO in college can transition just fine to the NFL.

In other short notes:- Fox Sports would like to replace John Lynch with....Tony Romo- RGIII out the door in Cleveland- Viks sign LT Riley Reiff- Martellus Bennett signs with Green Bay- Terrelle Pryor signs with Washington

Interesting. Didn't know Cable was doing that. I was wondering what was going to happen with RGIII. He could end up like Kaep. Difficult to place now. From what I heard about Romo's health history with his back I think retirement would be the sensible choice. Back conditions in a contact sport are going to be an ongoing problem and it already could make his post football life a problem. I think the writing is on the wall but it sounds like he wants a ring before he retires and with all of the media coming out of the Cowboys about Romo and what he will do I think he would have announced his retirement by now if he really wanted that so my guess is a two year contract with Houston or Denver or he does the smart thing and takes the desk job. I can't see Elway overpaying him though as he has a history of being economical and he was only going to pay Kaep what he thought he was worth which wasn't much. Maybe if Romo does not get the offer he thinks he deserves than he might retire anyway, hard to say. He's had a long career with lots of injuries but maybe watching Prescott has made him hungry again ?

The RGIII decision took me by a bit of surprise, but I guess it shouldn't have.

I agree with the comment about Elway not overpaying for Romo. Houston might be possible. I just wish he would not go there. Nothing against Houston. And then, more power to him if he wants to retire. But as you said, if he had wanted to retire he probably would have by now.

I really like Tony's attitude and how Tony has handled his situation now as a backup to Dak. Tony has been a good teammate. If Tony does not want to retire, and he wants a ring, there is nothing wrong with him in a reserve role as Dak's backup in Dallas. I remember PATS Drew Bledsoe losing his starting job to Brady after Ray Lewis hit Drew so hard along the sideline it severed an artery in Drew's chest. Drew was out for a while, like Romo, and when he was able to play, Bledsoe never recovered his starting job. But he did win a ring with the PATS in his new backup role. Dallas is a Super Bowl contender. So if I was Tony, I'd go to Jerry Jones and ask for a restructured contract as a backup, for backup money, and retire as a Cowboy in 3 or 4 years. But like the thought of retirement, if he had wanted to do that he probably would have done that by now also.

As to Cable, I have been following him closely since he came to Seattle and have listened to his rationale for player personnel decisions. Seattle has really allowed him a great deal of latitude when it came to player selections. Basically, Seattle trusted him and allowed him to experiment in that way. And it is pretty remarkable what Cable was able to do with the talent they acquired as "experiments". And that talent was nearly non-existent with the exception of some physical traits and aggressiveness.

The experimental phase is not completely over in Seattle though, considering their roster still includes starting rookie LT George Fant, who was an athletic NCAA college basketball player who played on year of college football. Crazy, huh? Even though Seattle just inked Luke Joeckel and is expected to draft an OLman in the first round, George will still get to compete.

In addition to Fant, Seattle still has RT Gerry Gilliam, who is a converted Penn State TE. But as a college TE, at least he had some idea of how to block. Gilliam's time is running out in Seattle though as he plays too "nice" for Cable. The rumor is Gilliam just does not have the makeup to take a defender 5-10 yards downfield, then finish it with a pancake. Coach can't expect success every time. But the effort needs to be there for Cable. To me, not every run block needs to be an attempted pancake, but that's another topic.

This has been one of the craziest FA periods I can remember. But I may need some hep with the remembering part.

I will say this. Something different has finally happened that I do not think we have ever seen before. It has to do with one man, one system, one idea and several experiments gone bad. The end result is finally good in terms of direction. Tom Cable (the man), Seattle offensive line (the system), converting defensive linemen to OL (the idea), and players like Sweezy and Sokoli (the experiments) who were defenders in college. There were other failed experiments besides those two, but at least those two made the roster and played some or started.

It all began several (3-4 years ago) when Cable was dissatisfied with the offensive line players who came through college programs that were either too much skewed toward pass offenses or used RPO (run-pass option) blocking styles. To Cable, the aggressiveness of OL players from those systems was not to Tom's liking. Especially players who were taught RPO in college, because every RPO run play has a pass element, meaning 3 yards downfield the linemen would have to lay off their blocks (to avoid illegal man downfield penalties if a pass was made) instead of driving a defender backwards. It is not hard to see how aggression could be abandoned during an RPO play. Tom did not like having to reteach college offensive linemen his style of blocking. He decided he would rather take an aggressive, mean defender and teach him to block his way. It worked somewhat with Sweezy, and so he drafted several other defenders the following year. Sokoli was the only one who made the roster, but that did not stick. The fact that Seattle in this 2 days of free agency have agreed to terms with G (or T) Luke Joeckel and have brought in Packer's TJ Lang for a visit shows Tom has finally abandoned (at least for now) the idea of converting DLmen to OLmen. And this makes good sense at least for one reason: REPS. Whether drafted as rookies, or signed as free agents, guys who have been playing offensive line at least have the reps under their belt. And that, while not impossible to replace, is very difficult to replace. Free agency is not the draft, but I'm hoping Tom has learned it does not pay to draft college defensive linemen and teach them to play OL.

On top of that, Laremy "gas mask" Tunsil. Remember him? He played in an RPO college offense. He really struggled his first few games in his rookie 2016 season, but was solid at Guard and showed he can play tackle in the end. So guys who played RPO in college can transition just fine to the NFL.

In other short notes:- Fox Sports would like to replace John Lynch with....Tony Romo- RGIII out the door in Cleveland- Viks sign LT Riley Reiff- Martellus Bennett signs with Green Bay- Terrelle Pryor signs with Washington

Interesting. Didn't know Cable was doing that. I was wondering what was going to happen with RGIII. He could end up like Kaep. Difficult to place now. From what I heard about Romo's health history with his back I think retirement would be the sensible choice. Back conditions in a contact sport are going to be an ongoing problem and it already could make his post football life a problem. I think the writing is on the wall but it sounds like he wants a ring before he retires and with all of the media coming out of the Cowboys about Romo and what he will do I think he would have announced his retirement by now if he really wanted that so my guess is a two year contract with Houston or Denver or he does the smart thing and takes the desk job. I can't see Elway overpaying him though as he has a history of being economical and he was only going to pay Kaep what he thought he was worth which wasn't much. Maybe if Romo does not get the offer he thinks he deserves than he might retire anyway, hard to say. He's had a long career with lots of injuries but maybe watching Prescott has made him hungry again ?

The RGIII decision took me by a bit of surprise, but I guess it shouldn't have.

I agree with the comment about Elway not overpaying for Romo. Houston might be possible. I just wish he would not go there. Nothing against Houston. And then, more power to him if he wants to retire. But as you said, if he had wanted to retire he probably would have by now.

I really like Tony's attitude and how Tony has handled his situation now as a backup to Dak. Tony has been a good teammate. If Tony does not want to retire, and he wants a ring, there is nothing wrong with him in a reserve role as Dak's backup in Dallas. I remember PATS Drew Bledsoe losing his starting job to Brady after Ray Lewis hit Drew so hard along the sideline it severed an artery in Drew's chest. Drew was out for a while, like Romo, and when he was able to play, Bledsoe never recovered his starting job. But he did win a ring with the PATS in his new backup role. Dallas is a Super Bowl contender. So if I was Tony, I'd go to Jerry Jones and ask for a restructured contract as a backup, for backup money, and retire as a Cowboy in 3 or 4 years. But like the thought of retirement, if he had wanted to do that he probably would have done that by now also.

As to Cable, I have been following him closely since he came to Seattle and have listened to his rationale for player personnel decisions. Seattle has really allowed him a great deal of latitude when it came to player selections. Basically, Seattle trusted him and allowed him to experiment in that way. And it is pretty remarkable what Cable was able to do with the talent they acquired as "experiments". And that talent was nearly non-existent with the exception of some physical traits and aggressiveness.

The experimental phase is not completely over in Seattle though, considering their roster still includes starting rookie LT George Fant, who was an athletic NCAA college basketball player who played on year of college football. Crazy, huh? Even though Seattle just inked Luke Joeckel and is expected to draft an OLman in the first round, George will still get to compete.

In addition to Fant, Seattle still has RT Gerry Gilliam, who is a converted Penn State TE. But as a college TE, at least he had some idea of how to block. Gilliam's time is running out in Seattle though as he plays too "nice" for Cable. The rumor is Gilliam just does not have the makeup to take a defender 5-10 yards downfield, then finish it with a pancake. Coach can't expect success every time. But the effort needs to be there for Cable. To me, not every run block needs to be an attempted pancake, but that's another topic.

Well the news about Romo like Cousins seems to change every day. Yesterday they were going to release him which surprised people but now they are saying they will trade him but nothing official has been said. Maybe Romo is tired of being on the sidelines but I agree that staying would not be a bad option, the trouble is while he is there the media will keep fanning the flames and it might be detrimental to Prescott. NFC West could be interesting in the upcoming season with two teams on the rebuild with new coaches, Seattle making a few changes and the Cardinals coming off a ordinary season for them. Fitzgerald was talking about retirement last year as well and the Cardinals have grabbed the 49ers veteran kicker Phil Dawson who kicked 42-48 in the past two seasons. The Cardinals kicker was terrible, no surprise they released him. Dawson only missed in the last two or so games and he started to perform like the rest of the team ! It must have been viral. Apart from Dawson's age I saw no reason to release him really, bit of an odd decision.

Both Fitzgerald and Palmer have hinted this season will be their last.

I can't see Romo staying in Dallas. If he's going to stay in the NFL, he's going to want to play. Also, in Dallas he'd be a distraction as much as anything.

Interesting on Tom Cable and Seattle.

Brandin Cooks signed by Pats, who don't have to give up Malcom Butler to get him. I mean, serious? How is it that the Pats are going to head into next season with a better team than the one that just went 14-2 and won the Super Bowl?

Not that surprised by RG3 being allowed to walk. But it does mean there's a better chance Osweiller stays on the roster, at least into camp. I was a little surprised Cleveland let Pryor go. It must be a sabermetric thing. He will get picked up quickly, as he proved to be a very good possession receiver with excellent work ethic (and an emergency 3rd string QB) for any team.

I forgot to communicate in my first reply to yours, that Cable doing that was part of the reason for my angst against him coming out in some of my posts the past season. I mean, Seattle has a franchise grade QB in Russell Wilson who had to run for his life against good defenses (Seattle OL could handle the poor defenses), and Seattle's plan was to protect him with a crap converted TE (Gilliam), a converted hoops guy (Fant) this year, and in past years with converted defenders that really didn't work out! Plus, Fant and Gilliam ended up as the starting LT & RT, respectively! That's Lame-o. Cable knows this too. In December he said the OL is very far away from where it needs to be without naming particulars. To Cable's credit, he can coach up players very well. He just needs some better talent to work with at both of the tackle positions.

This has been one of the craziest FA periods I can remember. But I may need some hep with the remembering part.

I will say this. Something different has finally happened that I do not think we have ever seen before. It has to do with one man, one system, one idea and several experiments gone bad. The end result is finally good in terms of direction. Tom Cable (the man), Seattle offensive line (the system), converting defensive linemen to OL (the idea), and players like Sweezy and Sokoli (the experiments) who were defenders in college. There were other failed experiments besides those two, but at least those two made the roster and played some or started.

It all began several (3-4 years ago) when Cable was dissatisfied with the offensive line players who came through college programs that were either too much skewed toward pass offenses or used RPO (run-pass option) blocking styles. To Cable, the aggressiveness of OL players from those systems was not to Tom's liking. Especially players who were taught RPO in college, because every RPO run play has a pass element, meaning 3 yards downfield the linemen would have to lay off their blocks (to avoid illegal man downfield penalties if a pass was made) instead of driving a defender backwards. It is not hard to see how aggression could be abandoned during an RPO play. Tom did not like having to reteach college offensive linemen his style of blocking. He decided he would rather take an aggressive, mean defender and teach him to block his way. It worked somewhat with Sweezy, and so he drafted several other defenders the following year. Sokoli was the only one who made the roster, but that did not stick. The fact that Seattle in this 2 days of free agency have agreed to terms with G (or T) Luke Joeckel and have brought in Packer's TJ Lang for a visit shows Tom has finally abandoned (at least for now) the idea of converting DLmen to OLmen. And this makes good sense at least for one reason: REPS. Whether drafted as rookies, or signed as free agents, guys who have been playing offensive line at least have the reps under their belt. And that, while not impossible to replace, is very difficult to replace. Free agency is not the draft, but I'm hoping Tom has learned it does not pay to draft college defensive linemen and teach them to play OL.

On top of that, Laremy "gas mask" Tunsil. Remember him? He played in an RPO college offense. He really struggled his first few games in his rookie 2016 season, but was solid at Guard and showed he can play tackle in the end. So guys who played RPO in college can transition just fine to the NFL.

In other short notes:- Fox Sports would like to replace John Lynch with....Tony Romo- RGIII out the door in Cleveland- Viks sign LT Riley Reiff- Martellus Bennett signs with Green Bay- Terrelle Pryor signs with Washington

Interesting. Didn't know Cable was doing that. I was wondering what was going to happen with RGIII. He could end up like Kaep. Difficult to place now. From what I heard about Romo's health history with his back I think retirement would be the sensible choice. Back conditions in a contact sport are going to be an ongoing problem and it already could make his post football life a problem. I think the writing is on the wall but it sounds like he wants a ring before he retires and with all of the media coming out of the Cowboys about Romo and what he will do I think he would have announced his retirement by now if he really wanted that so my guess is a two year contract with Houston or Denver or he does the smart thing and takes the desk job. I can't see Elway overpaying him though as he has a history of being economical and he was only going to pay Kaep what he thought he was worth which wasn't much. Maybe if Romo does not get the offer he thinks he deserves than he might retire anyway, hard to say. He's had a long career with lots of injuries but maybe watching Prescott has made him hungry again ?

The RGIII decision took me by a bit of surprise, but I guess it shouldn't have.

I agree with the comment about Elway not overpaying for Romo. Houston might be possible. I just wish he would not go there. Nothing against Houston. And then, more power to him if he wants to retire. But as you said, if he had wanted to retire he probably would have by now.

I really like Tony's attitude and how Tony has handled his situation now as a backup to Dak. Tony has been a good teammate. If Tony does not want to retire, and he wants a ring, there is nothing wrong with him in a reserve role as Dak's backup in Dallas. I remember PATS Drew Bledsoe losing his starting job to Brady after Ray Lewis hit Drew so hard along the sideline it severed an artery in Drew's chest. Drew was out for a while, like Romo, and when he was able to play, Bledsoe never recovered his starting job. But he did win a ring with the PATS in his new backup role. Dallas is a Super Bowl contender. So if I was Tony, I'd go to Jerry Jones and ask for a restructured contract as a backup, for backup money, and retire as a Cowboy in 3 or 4 years. But like the thought of retirement, if he had wanted to do that he probably would have done that by now also.

As to Cable, I have been following him closely since he came to Seattle and have listened to his rationale for player personnel decisions. Seattle has really allowed him a great deal of latitude when it came to player selections. Basically, Seattle trusted him and allowed him to experiment in that way. And it is pretty remarkable what Cable was able to do with the talent they acquired as "experiments". And that talent was nearly non-existent with the exception of some physical traits and aggressiveness.

The experimental phase is not completely over in Seattle though, considering their roster still includes starting rookie LT George Fant, who was an athletic NCAA college basketball player who played on year of college football. Crazy, huh? Even though Seattle just inked Luke Joeckel and is expected to draft an OLman in the first round, George will still get to compete.

In addition to Fant, Seattle still has RT Gerry Gilliam, who is a converted Penn State TE. But as a college TE, at least he had some idea of how to block. Gilliam's time is running out in Seattle though as he plays too "nice" for Cable. The rumor is Gilliam just does not have the makeup to take a defender 5-10 yards downfield, then finish it with a pancake. Coach can't expect success every time. But the effort needs to be there for Cable. To me, not every run block needs to be an attempted pancake, but that's another topic.

Why did the RGIII decision come as a surprise to you? He played in only 5 games last year with that shoulder injury, and he also has that twice-surgically repaired knee to be concerned with. A read-option QB that's been beat up pretty badly in the "not for long" NFL. Sadly, he may have an injury-shorten career.

And Romo is an aging injury-prone QB who couldn't even make it out of the preseason last year. Any wonder why there hasn't been any suitors wanting to trade for him? (gotta wonder what on Earth Jones thinks he can get for him). That being said, I'm a little surprised that Houston's sitting on the fence right now and not making a move on Romo. I guess at this point they don't see any trade value in him. Or just maybe they like Tom Savage afterall. Perhaps Garoppolo is in the mix.

Unlike Houston, Denver's starting QB is still here. I personally like Siemian and thought he performed remarkably well last year given the rebuilt offensive line he had (the Broncos lost 4 of their 5 starters from the previous SB year). He also lost Anderson midway through the season which hurt their running game. Siemian was 8-6 in 14 games he played in (2 missed for injuries) and threw for over 3400 yds (18/10) with an 84 QBR...not bad, IMO. And Elway's beefed up the line with the huge acquisition of Leary from Dallas (stole a good from Jones).

I would like to see Elway stick with Siemian and Lynch going into 2017. But what do I know, and all's too quiet in Dove Vally right now. I think the aging Romo is too big of an injury risk to be asked to play 16 games. Back injuries are nothing to mess with in a high-impact collision sport.

Alpe d'Huez wrote:Well, that's part of Seattle's problem. They pay maybe a quarter of the entire team salary on a handful of players. There's not much left to buy an OL.

Yes even though Seattle was winning they were also losing to the Rams and getting pushed by the 49ers. I was never convinced that they were going past the first week of the playoffs. I thought they looked much better the year before.

This has been one of the craziest FA periods I can remember. But I may need some hep with the remembering part.

I will say this. Something different has finally happened that I do not think we have ever seen before. It has to do with one man, one system, one idea and several experiments gone bad. The end result is finally good in terms of direction. Tom Cable (the man), Seattle offensive line (the system), converting defensive linemen to OL (the idea), and players like Sweezy and Sokoli (the experiments) who were defenders in college. There were other failed experiments besides those two, but at least those two made the roster and played some or started.

It all began several (3-4 years ago) when Cable was dissatisfied with the offensive line players who came through college programs that were either too much skewed toward pass offenses or used RPO (run-pass option) blocking styles. To Cable, the aggressiveness of OL players from those systems was not to Tom's liking. Especially players who were taught RPO in college, because every RPO run play has a pass element, meaning 3 yards downfield the linemen would have to lay off their blocks (to avoid illegal man downfield penalties if a pass was made) instead of driving a defender backwards. It is not hard to see how aggression could be abandoned during an RPO play. Tom did not like having to reteach college offensive linemen his style of blocking. He decided he would rather take an aggressive, mean defender and teach him to block his way. It worked somewhat with Sweezy, and so he drafted several other defenders the following year. Sokoli was the only one who made the roster, but that did not stick. The fact that Seattle in this 2 days of free agency have agreed to terms with G (or T) Luke Joeckel and have brought in Packer's TJ Lang for a visit shows Tom has finally abandoned (at least for now) the idea of converting DLmen to OLmen. And this makes good sense at least for one reason: REPS. Whether drafted as rookies, or signed as free agents, guys who have been playing offensive line at least have the reps under their belt. And that, while not impossible to replace, is very difficult to replace. Free agency is not the draft, but I'm hoping Tom has learned it does not pay to draft college defensive linemen and teach them to play OL.

On top of that, Laremy "gas mask" Tunsil. Remember him? He played in an RPO college offense. He really struggled his first few games in his rookie 2016 season, but was solid at Guard and showed he can play tackle in the end. So guys who played RPO in college can transition just fine to the NFL.

In other short notes:- Fox Sports would like to replace John Lynch with....Tony Romo- RGIII out the door in Cleveland- Viks sign LT Riley Reiff- Martellus Bennett signs with Green Bay- Terrelle Pryor signs with Washington

Interesting. Didn't know Cable was doing that. I was wondering what was going to happen with RGIII. He could end up like Kaep. Difficult to place now. From what I heard about Romo's health history with his back I think retirement would be the sensible choice. Back conditions in a contact sport are going to be an ongoing problem and it already could make his post football life a problem. I think the writing is on the wall but it sounds like he wants a ring before he retires and with all of the media coming out of the Cowboys about Romo and what he will do I think he would have announced his retirement by now if he really wanted that so my guess is a two year contract with Houston or Denver or he does the smart thing and takes the desk job. I can't see Elway overpaying him though as he has a history of being economical and he was only going to pay Kaep what he thought he was worth which wasn't much. Maybe if Romo does not get the offer he thinks he deserves than he might retire anyway, hard to say. He's had a long career with lots of injuries but maybe watching Prescott has made him hungry again ?

The RGIII decision took me by a bit of surprise, but I guess it shouldn't have.

I agree with the comment about Elway not overpaying for Romo. Houston might be possible. I just wish he would not go there. Nothing against Houston. And then, more power to him if he wants to retire. But as you said, if he had wanted to retire he probably would have by now.

I really like Tony's attitude and how Tony has handled his situation now as a backup to Dak. Tony has been a good teammate. If Tony does not want to retire, and he wants a ring, there is nothing wrong with him in a reserve role as Dak's backup in Dallas. I remember PATS Drew Bledsoe losing his starting job to Brady after Ray Lewis hit Drew so hard along the sideline it severed an artery in Drew's chest. Drew was out for a while, like Romo, and when he was able to play, Bledsoe never recovered his starting job. But he did win a ring with the PATS in his new backup role. Dallas is a Super Bowl contender. So if I was Tony, I'd go to Jerry Jones and ask for a restructured contract as a backup, for backup money, and retire as a Cowboy in 3 or 4 years. But like the thought of retirement, if he had wanted to do that he probably would have done that by now also.

As to Cable, I have been following him closely since he came to Seattle and have listened to his rationale for player personnel decisions. Seattle has really allowed him a great deal of latitude when it came to player selections. Basically, Seattle trusted him and allowed him to experiment in that way. And it is pretty remarkable what Cable was able to do with the talent they acquired as "experiments". And that talent was nearly non-existent with the exception of some physical traits and aggressiveness.

The experimental phase is not completely over in Seattle though, considering their roster still includes starting rookie LT George Fant, who was an athletic NCAA college basketball player who played on year of college football. Crazy, huh? Even though Seattle just inked Luke Joeckel and is expected to draft an OLman in the first round, George will still get to compete.

In addition to Fant, Seattle still has RT Gerry Gilliam, who is a converted Penn State TE. But as a college TE, at least he had some idea of how to block. Gilliam's time is running out in Seattle though as he plays too "nice" for Cable. The rumor is Gilliam just does not have the makeup to take a defender 5-10 yards downfield, then finish it with a pancake. Coach can't expect success every time. But the effort needs to be there for Cable. To me, not every run block needs to be an attempted pancake, but that's another topic.

Why did the RGIII decision come as a surprise to you? He played in only 5 games last year with that shoulder injury, and he also has that twice-surgically repaired knee to be concerned with. A read-option QB that's been beat up pretty badly in the "not for long" NFL. Sadly, he may have an injury-shorten career.

And Romo is an aging injury-prone QB who couldn't even make it out of the preseason last year. Any wonder why there hasn't been any suitors wanting to trade for him? (gotta wonder what on Earth Jones thinks he can get for him). That being said, I'm a little surprised that Houston's sitting on the fence right now and not making a move on Romo. I guess at this point they don't see any trade value in him. Or just maybe they like Tom Savage afterall. Perhaps Garoppolo is in the mix.

Unlike Houston, Denver's starting QB is still here. I personally like Siemian and thought he performed remarkably well last year given the rebuilt offensive line he had (the Broncos lost 4 of their 5 starters from the previous SB year). He also lost Anderson midway through the season which hurt their running game. Siemian was 8-6 in 14 games he played in (2 missed for injuries) and threw for over 3400 yds (18/10) with an 84 QBR...not bad, IMO. And Elway's beefed up the line with the huge acquisition of Leary from Dallas (stole a good from Jones).

I would like to see Elway stick with Siemian and Lynch going into 2017. But what do I know, and all's too quiet in Dove Vally right now. I think the aging Romo is too big of an injury risk to be asked to play 16 games. Back injuries are nothing to mess with in a high-impact collision sport.

Elway's a pretty smart operator. Maybe he will think Romo is not worth the risk either. Did not see much of Siemian last season but he is talented. RGIII did not surprise me at all and that does not augur well for Romo either as far as paying for injury prone QBs go. Denver and Houston would only want him in the short term and the risk is they may not even get that. I expect the Cousins and Romo stories to bubble along for a while yet. The longer the Cowboys hang onto Romo the more desperate teams will be and they will offer more for a trade which is what Jerry Jones wants. And if no one bites, the Cowboys won't mind much but Romo and Prescott will see it differently.

Alpe d'Huez wrote:Both Fitzgerald and Palmer have hinted this season will be their last.

I can't see Romo staying in Dallas. If he's going to stay in the NFL, he's going to want to play. Also, in Dallas he'd be a distraction as much as anything.

Interesting on Tom Cable and Seattle.

Brandin Cooks signed by Pats, who don't have to give up Malcom Butler to get him. I mean, serious? How is it that the Pats are going to head into next season with a better team than the one that just went 14-2 and won the Super Bowl?

Not that surprised by RG3 being allowed to walk. But it does mean there's a better chance Osweiller stays on the roster, at least into camp. I was a little surprised Cleveland let Pryor go. It must be a sabermetric thing. He will get picked up quickly, as he proved to be a very good possession receiver with excellent work ethic (and an emergency 3rd string QB) for any team.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the Steelers and Cardinals draft QBs for obvious reasons but the best ones will be gone by then unless they do some horse trading. Kansas want Watson. Be interesting to see where Trubisky winds up as both the Browns and 49ers have multiple needs while the Jets and Bears just signed QBs and the Rams have Goff. Not sure what the Jags have in mind.

Alpe d'Huez wrote:Well, that's part of Seattle's problem. They pay maybe a quarter of the entire team salary on a handful of players. There's not much left to buy an OL.

Yes. On overthecap.com for 2017 they currently have about $25M cap space, not including what they just paid out for Luke Joeckel. Their highest paid unrestricted FA in 2017 is kicker Hauschka at $2.85M who they already let go. So overthecap is not totally up to date. They do have a few they will have to make slight tough decisions on, like UFA LB Mike Morgan (b/c they are thin at LB), RFA CB Deshawn Shead, UFA S Jeron Johnson, UFA S Kelcie McCray (both Jeron and Kelcie were backups who saw action with injuries to Chancellor and Thomas), and UFA TE Luke Willson.

Anyway, in all probability the organization asked Cable to do more with less budget on the OL.

For 2018 look at some of the bigger names who will be UFAs: S Kam Chancellor, Center Justin Britt, WR Paul Richardson, TE Jimmy Graham. But will have $47M cap space in 2018.

Nomad wrote:Why did the RGIII decision come as a surprise to you? He played in only 5 games last year with that shoulder injury, and he also has that twice-surgically repaired knee to be concerned with. A read-option QB that's been beat up pretty badly in the "not for long" NFL. Sadly, he may have an injury-shorten career.

And Romo is an aging injury-prone QB who couldn't even make it out of the preseason last year. Any wonder why there hasn't been any suitors wanting to trade for him? (gotta wonder what on Earth Jones thinks he can get for him). That being said, I'm a little surprised that Houston's sitting on the fence right now and not making a move on Romo. I guess at this point they don't see any trade value in him. Or just maybe they like Tom Savage afterall. Perhaps Garoppolo is in the mix.

Because I didn't follow the Browns or what was going on with RGIII at all during last season. LOL.

Alpe d'Huez wrote:Both Fitzgerald and Palmer have hinted this season will be their last.

I can't see Romo staying in Dallas. If he's going to stay in the NFL, he's going to want to play. Also, in Dallas he'd be a distraction as much as anything.

Interesting on Tom Cable and Seattle.

Brandin Cooks signed by Pats, who don't have to give up Malcom Butler to get him. I mean, serious? How is it that the Pats are going to head into next season with a better team than the one that just went 14-2 and won the Super Bowl?

Not that surprised by RG3 being allowed to walk. But it does mean there's a better chance Osweiller stays on the roster, at least into camp. I was a little surprised Cleveland let Pryor go. It must be a sabermetric thing. He will get picked up quickly, as he proved to be a very good possession receiver with excellent work ethic (and an emergency 3rd string QB) for any team.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the Steelers and Cardinals draft QBs for obvious reasons but the best ones will be gone by then unless they do some horse trading. Kansas want Watson. Be interesting to see where Trubisky winds up as both the Browns and 49ers have multiple needs while the Jets and Bears just signed QBs and the Rams have Goff. Not sure what the Jags have in mind.

Because it's Belicheck, LOL, who seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. Lose Martellus Bennett to free agency? No problem. Bring in Cooks. Bill changes the blueprint just enough to keep teams trying to game plan them off balance, not letting them know what to expect on day 1. Most teams probably fear free agency because they fear who they might lose from their roster. But with Belichick, it is almost like he welcomes free agency and uses it to tweak the roster to keep others guessing - and make them better if they can. Funny how he is successful doing that. Well, who does not want to play for Bill, and with Brady who's play makes anyone they bring in better (e.g. Hogan, etc). And BTW, who does not want a SB ring?

As for drafting QBs, if I were the Steelers and Cards I'd be looking to snag one the way Belichick did. By finding some unheralded guy with potential and drafting them in late rounds. That way if the player don't pan out they are not out much of anything. To do that, team scouts have to do a lot of homework.

Alpe d'Huez wrote:Both Fitzgerald and Palmer have hinted this season will be their last.

I can't see Romo staying in Dallas. If he's going to stay in the NFL, he's going to want to play. Also, in Dallas he'd be a distraction as much as anything.

Interesting on Tom Cable and Seattle.

Brandin Cooks signed by Pats, who don't have to give up Malcom Butler to get him. I mean, serious? How is it that the Pats are going to head into next season with a better team than the one that just went 14-2 and won the Super Bowl?

Not that surprised by RG3 being allowed to walk. But it does mean there's a better chance Osweiller stays on the roster, at least into camp. I was a little surprised Cleveland let Pryor go. It must be a sabermetric thing. He will get picked up quickly, as he proved to be a very good possession receiver with excellent work ethic (and an emergency 3rd string QB) for any team.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the Steelers and Cardinals draft QBs for obvious reasons but the best ones will be gone by then unless they do some horse trading. Kansas want Watson. Be interesting to see where Trubisky winds up as both the Browns and 49ers have multiple needs while the Jets and Bears just signed QBs and the Rams have Goff. Not sure what the Jags have in mind.

Because it's Belicheck, LOL, who seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. Lose Martellus Bennett to free agency? No problem. Bring in Cooks. Bill changes the blueprint just enough to keep teams trying to game plan them off balance, not letting them know what to expect on day 1. Most teams probably fear free agency because they fear who they might lose from their roster. But with Belichick, it is almost like he welcomes free agency and uses it to tweak the roster to keep others guessing - and make them better if they can. Funny how he is successful doing that. Well, who does not want to play for Bill, and with Brady who's play makes anyone they bring in better (e.g. Hogan, etc). And BTW, who does not want a SB ring?

As for drafting QBs, if I were the Steelers and Cards I'd be looking to snag one the way Belichick did. By finding some unheralded guy with potential and drafting them in late rounds. That way if the player don't pan out they are not out much of anything. To do that, team scouts have to do a lot of homework.

Yeah good scouts are invaluable. Look at how many teams passed on Prescott ! While look at how deep the Rams went to get Goff ! I have no idea what the Steelers back up is like but the Cardinals back up looked pretty ordinary the few times i watched him. Belichick seems to have it down to a fine art they way he discards and takes on new players and improves the team. Very rarely does he get it wrong so he must have a lot of faith in his scouts and he obviously knows how to juggle free agents.

Alpe d'Huez wrote:Both Fitzgerald and Palmer have hinted this season will be their last.

I can't see Romo staying in Dallas. If he's going to stay in the NFL, he's going to want to play. Also, in Dallas he'd be a distraction as much as anything.

Interesting on Tom Cable and Seattle.

Brandin Cooks signed by Pats, who don't have to give up Malcom Butler to get him. I mean, serious? How is it that the Pats are going to head into next season with a better team than the one that just went 14-2 and won the Super Bowl?

Not that surprised by RG3 being allowed to walk. But it does mean there's a better chance Osweiller stays on the roster, at least into camp. I was a little surprised Cleveland let Pryor go. It must be a sabermetric thing. He will get picked up quickly, as he proved to be a very good possession receiver with excellent work ethic (and an emergency 3rd string QB) for any team.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the Steelers and Cardinals draft QBs for obvious reasons but the best ones will be gone by then unless they do some horse trading. Kansas want Watson. Be interesting to see where Trubisky winds up as both the Browns and 49ers have multiple needs while the Jets and Bears just signed QBs and the Rams have Goff. Not sure what the Jags have in mind.

Because it's Belicheck, LOL, who seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. Lose Martellus Bennett to free agency? No problem. Bring in Cooks. Bill changes the blueprint just enough to keep teams trying to game plan them off balance, not letting them know what to expect on day 1. Most teams probably fear free agency because they fear who they might lose from their roster. But with Belichick, it is almost like he welcomes free agency and uses it to tweak the roster to keep others guessing - and make them better if they can. Funny how he is successful doing that. Well, who does not want to play for Bill, and with Brady who's play makes anyone they bring in better (e.g. Hogan, etc). And BTW, who does not want a SB ring?

As for drafting QBs, if I were the Steelers and Cards I'd be looking to snag one the way Belichick did. By finding some unheralded guy with potential and drafting them in late rounds. That way if the player don't pan out they are not out much of anything. To do that, team scouts have to do a lot of homework.

Yeah good scouts are invaluable. Look at how many teams passed on Prescott ! While look at how deep the Rams went to get Goff ! I have no idea what the Steelers back up is like but the Cardinals back up looked pretty ordinary the few times i watched him. Belichick seems to have it down to a fine art they way he discards and takes on new players and improves the team. Very rarely does he get it wrong so he must have a lot of faith in his scouts and he obviously knows how to juggle free agents.

A little known fact about Prescott is that he got popped for a DUI about month before the draft last year. He was projected as a high 2nd rounder and the DUI dropped him all the way down to the 4th rd! Alcohol and potential NFL QBs don't mix well as far as team owners are concerned...see Manziel.